London, Jan 28: A chilling book of Nazi photographs showing Adolf Hitler in both a powerful and caring light is up for auction.
Emerging after 70 years, the “soccer-like” stickers – collected by members of the Hitler Youth – feature the Austrian-born German politician skiing.
The images were all part of Joseph Goebbels` propagandist policy.
Made up of 138 pictures in total, the complete album includes snaps collected by Hitler fans over a period of time and stuck into the book.
It was brought back after the Second World War by a British soldier, reports the Telegraph.
The album has remained in his family ever since but has now come to light after being made available for sale at auction.
Included are pictures of the smiling Fuhrer with Goebbels`` young daughter Helga and other children wearing traditional German dress.
Richard Westwood-Brookes, from Mullock``s auctioneers, is selling the album at Ludlow racecourse on January 29.
He said: "This worked in just the same way as the Panini sticker albums of footballers work. Keen Nazis would buy the photographs from the local shop and then glue them into their albums. They would look forward to filling up a page or an album, just like children enjoy completing their football albums.
"There are some stirring images and they also show the other more human side of Hitler that we often don`t see. This was released in 1936, the year Berlin held the Olympic Games and the whole world was looking on.
"Goebbels was an evil genius and these albums meant people repeatedly opened them up to see inspiring photographs of their Fuhrer. There were other albums that covered the German navy, army and air force.
"It was during the year when the propaganda drive was at its peak and after Hitler had transformed the country in many ways. This album is in good condition and a soldier recovered it after the war and brought it home. It is now being sold by his family."
ANI
